WASHINGTON – Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who is suffering from thyroid cancer, was admitted to Arlington Hospital in Virginia complaining of a fever Tuesday night, the Supreme Court said Wednesday.
Rehnquist, 80, was taken to the hospital by ambulance and spent Wednesday resting and undergoing tests, said Kathy Arberg, a court spokeswoman.
Reporters who were camped out in front of Rehnquist’s house because of recent rumors that he will retire soon saw court police carrying out the chief justice’s cane, a shirt, shoes and a pair of trousers, apparently to take to the hospital. After fielding questions about the unusual movements, the court announced Rehnquist’s hospitalization.
Doctors interviewed Wednesday said fever-producing infections are common in patients who, like the chief justice, have a surgically made opening in their throats to permit breathing.
The opening, known as a tracheotomy, increases the risk of infection in the trachea, bronchial tubes and lungs.
“It is probably something that could be readily treated and wouldn’t require hospitalization for long,” said Steven Sherman, a thyroid cancer specialist at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
But the events reignited speculation about how long Rehnquist’s health will permit him to remain on the court. If the chief justice were to follow Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor into retirement, President Bush would have a chance to name two justices at once – setting the stage for what could be an epic confirmation struggle in the Senate.
Some allies of the White House said they think Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, a close friend of the president’s whom many conservatives have opposed, is less likely to be named.
Some new names are now being floated, according to the White House allies, including former deputy attorney general Larry Thompson; Judge Alice Batchelder of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, based in Cincinnati; and Chief Judge Deanell Reece Tacha of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, based in Denver.
Associated Press
Wednesday’s hospitalization of Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist added fuel to the speculation that he might retire.
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